The North Mississippi Allstars have been standard-bearers of sorts since they released their first album in 2000, keeping alive an endangered blues tradition from the hill country of the state that lent its name to Luther and Cody Dickinson’s band. It’s a role they take seriously on their latest album, “World Boogie Is Coming,” which premieres today on Speakeasy.

The title comes from a favorite saying of their father’s, the veteran producer and sideman Jim Dickinson (he produced the Replacements’ “Pleased to Meet Me” and played piano on the Rolling Stones’ “Wild Horses), who died in 2009. His influence rubbed off: Cody Dickinson produced “World Boogie Is Coming” (and filmed as much of the proceedings as possible for multimedia content), allowing Luther to let loose on guitar and vocals. The album includes a guest spot from Robert Plant, along with contributions from frequent collaborators Chris Chew, Duwayne and Garry Burnside, Kenny Brown and Alvin Youngblood Hart.

The songs are packed with sinewy slide guitar, sturdy riffs and Luther Dickinson’s muddy vocal drawl, intercut here and there with blistering peels of harmonica (courtesy of Plant).

The musician and producer Jim Dickinson died this weekend, following complications from heart surgery. Dickinson was one of those below-the-radar guys but his reputation in music circles is considerable. The Memphis-native produced indie icons like Big Star, fathered two-thirds of the North Mississippi All-Stars (sons Luther and Cody), released a cult classic album, “Dixie Fried,” and lent his soulful piano playing to records by, among others, Aretha Franklin, Ry Cooder, Bob Dylan, and the Rolling Stones. In this clip, from the movie “Gimme Shelter,” Dickinson kicks back on the couch with Keith Richards at Muscle Shoals Sound Studio, listening to the freshly cut “Wild Horses,” a track on which he played piano. Read More »

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